Free
E-newsletter
Subscribe to Housecall
Our weekly general interest
e-newsletter keeps you up to date
on a wide variety of health topics.
Mayo Clinic Housecall
Stay up to date on the latest health information.
What you get
- Free weekly e-newsletter
- Mayo Clinic expertise
- Recipes, tools and other helpful information
- We do not share your e-mail address
What you can expect
By Mayo Clinic staff
CLICK TO ENLARGE
|
Ultrasound of breast cyst |
|
Ultrasound of liver tumor |
|
Ultrasound of gallstones |
|
Ultrasound of needle-guided procedure |
During an ultrasound exam, you usually lie on an examination table. A small amount of gel is applied to your skin. The gel helps eliminate the formation of air pockets between the ultrasound and your body. During the exam, a technician trained in ultrasound imaging (sonographer) presses a small hand-held device (transducer), about the size of a bar of soap, against your skin over the area of your body being examined, moving from one area to another as necessary.
Based on the same principles as sonar, a technology used to detect underwater objects, the transducer generates and receives high-frequency sound waves that can't be heard by the human ear.
As the sonographer places the transducer on your skin, crystals inside the transducer emit pulses of sound waves that travel into your body. Your tissues, bones and body fluids reflect the sound waves and bounce them back to the transducer. The transducer then sends this information to a computer, which composes detailed images based on the patterns created by the sound waves.
Though the majority of ultrasound exams are performed with a transducer on your skin, some ultrasounds are done inside your body (invasive ultrasounds). For these exams, a specialized transducer is attached to a probe that's inserted into a natural opening in your body. Examples of these exams include:
- Transesophageal echocardiogram. A small, specialized transducer is inserted into your esophagus to obtain images of the nearby heart. Such exams are typically performed with sedation.
- Transrectal ultrasound. A small, specialized transducer is inserted into a man's rectum to view his prostate.
- Transvaginal ultrasound. A small, specialized transducer is inserted into a woman's vagina to view her uterus and ovaries.
Ultrasound is usually a painless procedure. However, you may experience some mild discomfort as the sonographer guides the transducer over your body, especially if you're required to have a full bladder. A typical ultrasound exam takes from 30 minutes to an hour.
- Cosgrove DO, et al. Ultrasound: General principles. In: Adam A, et al. Grainger & Allison's Diagnostic Radiology: A Textbook of Medical Imaging. 5th ed. Philadelphia, Pa.: Elsevier Churchill Livingstone; 2008. http://www.mdconsult.com/books/linkTo?type=bookPage&isbn=978-0-443-10163-2&eid=4-u1.0-B978-0-443-10163-2..50006-3. Accessed Jan. 12, 2012.
- A close look at ultrasound. U.S. Food and Drug Administration. http://www.fda.gov/ForConsumers/ConsumerUpdates/ucm181011.htm. Accessed Jan. 12, 2012.
- General ultrasound imaging. RadiologyInfo.org. http://www.radiologyinfo.org/en/info.cfm?pg=genus. Accessed Jan. 12, 2012.
- Important questions to ask about the quality of your imaging examination. American College of Radiology. http://www.acr.org/MainMenuCategories/PatientInfo/ImportantQuestions.aspx. Accessed Jan. 12, 2012.
Find Mayo Clinic on